MORESCRUTINY ON MENENDEZ AND DONOR: The Washington Post reports that Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) tried two different times to dispute top federal health officials’ findings that one of his major donors had overbilled Medicare by nearly $9 million. As we reported last week, the donor, Florida eye doctor Salomon Melgen — who’s now under investigation by the FBI — and his family have given more than $426,000 to federal candidates since 1992. The list of recipients includes Republicans and many Florida politicians, though Menendez is clearly the favorite.

But all of those donations are just the tip of the iceberg — Melgen’s business, Vitero-Retinal Consultants also gave $700,000 to Majority PAC in 2012, the super PAC set up to support Senate Democrats. Majority PAC spent about $600,000 to back Menendez in his reelection race last fall.

And Center for Responsive Politics research has also found that Salomon and his wife, Flor, each donated $20,000 to the Fund to Uphold the Constitution, a legal defense fund that Menendez set up. The organization reported spending about $109,000 to pay law firm Perkins Coie for “campaign expenses” during the 2012 election cycle.

Menendez has been under attack for his relationship to Melgen since late October, when a conservative blog said the senator visited with prostitutes but didn’t pay them during trips to the Dominican Republic that he took with Melgen. Menendez has denied the prostitution-related allegations but recently reimbursed the Florida doctor for flights on his private jet during those trips. Following the initial allegations, Menendez’s legal defense fund reported paying more than $26,000 to Genova Burns, a New Jersey law firm that previously represented him in 2010 when a recall effort to unseat him was launched.

Hutchison made it clear she doesn’t plan to lobby, telling The Hill that she will advise clients on “the regulatory process, legislative attitudes and the likelihood of government action.” Current legislation prevents senators from registering as lobbyists until two years after leaving office.

Hutchison is the latest in a string of lawmakers to travel through Washington’s revolving door to K Street by joining a law or lobbying firm after leaving the 112th Congress.

— Janie Boschma

POUNCING ON PRIMARIES?: Americans for Prosperity‘s plans for the next congressional and presidential elections could include something new for the group: attempting to influence the outcomes of Republican primaries. In an interview with The Daily Caller, AFP president Tim Phillips said the issue hasn’t been decided, but “everything is on the table for us.”

Americans for Prosperity, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that doesn’t disclose its donors, has 31 state chapters and devoted almost all of its resources to campaigning against Democrats in the last election. It spent $33.54 million on independent expenditures (political ads) advocating against President Obama’s re-election and $2.8 million on electioneering communications — ads that don’t expressly advocate for or against a candidate — that mentioned three candidates. All three were Democrats cast in a negative light.

If AFP gets into the primary game, it could, in some instances, be going up against the new Karl Rove-created spinoff of super PAC American Crossroads, called the Conservative Victory Project. That group is expected to support more conventional Republicans in primaries when they face GOP hopefuls that the group views as less electable in a general election.

— Janie Boschma

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